Geneva Switzerland-based luxury goods holdings company Richemont has big plans for Canada in 2017, including opening boutiques as well as renovating/expanding some existing locations. At least nine freestanding Richemont-owned luxury boutiques are confirmed to be opening next year, with the possibility of even more as negotiations continue, according to sources.

Vacheron Constantin: Founded in Geneva in 1755, the luxury watch brand operates six stores in the United States, including stores in New York City (Madison Avenue), Beverly Hills (Rodeo Drive), Costa Mesa (South Coast Plaza), Miami (Miami Design District), Honolulu (DFS ’T Galleria’) and at the Palazzo in Las Vegas.

(all photos were taken at Toronto's Yorkdale Shopping Centre by Craig Patterson on the evening of Tuesday, November 15, 2016)

Vancouver is also part of Richemont’s expansion plans, with sources at the City confirming that the company has purchased stratified retail space for at least one of its more prominent brands. We’ll discuss more on Richemont’s Vancouver expansion at a later date when permitted, though we’re able to confirm, through the original source of Business in Vancouver, that Richemont’s Van Cleef & Arpels nameplate will open a large store on Alberni Street in the heart of the city's downtown 'Luxury Zone'.

Van Cleef & Arpels will also open a freestanding Toronto location in 2017, with details to be revealed at a later date when permitted. The brand will also gain prominence on Bloor Street West with the renovation of Maison Birks at Manulife Centre, which will see a Van Cleef & Arpels shop-in-store gain its own street-front entrance, near an exterior entrance to Italian food concept Eataly which will be located directly above. Manulife Centre’s renovations will be completed in 2019.

Richemont’s Cartier brand is also seeing movements in Canada. The brand is currently renovating its two-level Bloor Street West flagship in Toronto, and sources say that another important location could be expanded. A new Cartier store could open in a major Canadian city next year, while another existing location will be relocated, according to sources familiar with the deals.

Luxury watch brand Jaeger-LeCoultre, also under the Richemont ownership umbrella, expanded into Canada in the fall of 2015 with stores on Alberni Street in Vancouver, and at Yorkdale Shopping Centre in Toronto. The company’s Montblanc nameplate has also been growing in Canada over the past several years, now operating six corporately-owned and franchised locations in Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver. Richemont’s Chloé and Azzedine Alaïa women’s fashion brands have also seen recent growth in Canada. Separate Chloé women's ready-to-wear and accessory shops opened at Nordstrom in Vancouver in September of 2015, followed by the same at Saks Fifth Avenue in downtown Toronto in February of 2016, and at Nordstrom at Toronto’s Yorkdale last month. Pricey Azzedine Alaïa, with limited distribution globally, saw the opening of a women’s ready-to-wear boutique on the third floor of Saks Fifth Avenue’s Toronto flagship in February of 2016 — remarkable, considering Hudson’s Bay’s ‘The Room’, located on the same floor in the same building as Saks Fifth Avenue, also boasts a well-stocked Alaïa section.

A number of other luxury houses and luxury brands have recently been expanding in Canada, including Prada, Chanel and Kering Group (the latter opened two Saint Laurent boutiques in Canada in 2016, including a Yorkdale location last week). Canada is increasingly seeing luxury brands opening stores as well as expanding distribution, addressing rising incomes among the country’s elite, not to mention increasing tourism numbers in Vancouver and Toronto. We’ll do a follow-up article in the coming weeks discussing the expansion of luxury brands into Canada, as it’s a remarkable trend at a time when some global markets are contracting, and some brands are seeing lowering sales.

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